Just Finished Reading: Valentine’s Exile by E E Knight

On a devastated future Earth under the rule of the terrifying alien Kurian Order the human resistance are celebrating the liberation of Dallas. As a reward for his part in the action, David Valentine is offered a staff position in the Free Territories military command. But before he can take up his new position he is arrested for war crimes against the Quisling soldiers butchered by concentration camp inmates. Despite the questionable nature of the charges against him he is advised to plead guilty for the good of ‘the cause’. Unwilling to do so he is threatened with the death penalty if he does not comply. Realising that he has made enemies is high places he escapes and continues his search for the wife of his commanding officer who vanished months previously. The search leads Valentine into the heart of enemy territory and to a heavily guarded hospital complex where deeply disturbing things are happening.

This is the 5^th book in the Vampire Earth series – and, as far as I recall, the first book in the series to mention Vampire Earth in the text. So far this series has been universally very good. Unfortunately the author stumbled here and produced a novel which failed to move the storyline on very much, introduced few interesting new characters and only unveiled what I saw as minor aspects of a very much altered planet not covered in his previous books. Whist not exactly bad in any great degree this novel did come across as rather flat and work-a-day with little excitement and few thrills. Although certainly readable it was definitely not one of his best. I do hope that the steam has not gone out of this narrative because I think it still has much to say and far to go. Hopefully the next instalment(s) will get things back on track. I really do hope so as this was shaping up as one of my favourite series in recent years.